without any delay he gave his orders, that a captain, with threescore men, should attend me to an old house about a mile distance. As soon as we had got into it, I set about barricading all the open places, and avenues, and put my men in a posture ready to receive an enemy, as soon as he should appear; upon which the captain, as a feint, ordered a few of his men to show themselves on a rising ground just before the house. But we had like to have caught a Tartar: for, though the enemy took the train I had laid, and, on sight of our small body on the hill, sent a party from their greater body to intercept them, before they could reach the town; yet the sequel proved, we had mistaken their number, and it soon appeared to be much greater than we at first imagined. However, our outscouts, as I may call them, got safe into the house; and, on the appearance of the party, we let fly a full volley, which lay dead on the spot three men and one horse. Hereupon the whole body made up to the house, but stood aloof upon the hill without reach of our shot. We soon saw our danger from the number of the enemy: and well for us it was, that the watchful governor had taken notice of it, as well as we in the house. For, observing us surrounded with the enemy, and by a power so much superior, he marched himself, with a good part of the garrison, to our relief. The enemy stood a little time as if they would receive them; but upon second thoughts they retired, and, to our no little joy, left us at liberty to come out of the house and join the garrison.

Scarce a day passed but we had some visits of the like kind, attended sometimes with rencounters of this nature; insomuch that there was hardly any stirring out in safety for small parties, though never so little a way. There was, within a little mile of the town, an old vineyard, environed with a loose stone wall; an officer and I made an agreement to ride thither for an airing. We did so, and, after a little riding, it came into my

head to put a fright upon the officer. And very lucky for us both was that unlucky thought of mine; pretending to see a party of the enemy make up to us, I gave him the alarm, set spurs to my horse, and rid as fast as legs could carry me. The officer no way bated of his speed; and we had scarce got out of the vineyard, but my jest proved earnest; twelve of the enemy's horse pursuing us to the very gates of the town. Nor could I ever after prevail upon my fellow-traveller to believe, that he owed his escape to merriment more than speed.

Soon after my charge, as to the fortifications, was pretty well over, I obtained leave of the governor to be absent for a fortnight, upon some affairs of my own at Valencia. On my return from whence, at a town called Venissa, I met two officers of an English regiment, going to the place from whence I last came. They told me, after common congratulations, that they had left major Boyd at a little place called Capel, hiring another mule, that he rode on thither having tired and failed him; desiring withal, that if I met him, I would let him know that they would stay for him at that place. I had another gentleman in my company, and we had travelled on not above a league further, whence, at a little distance, we were both surprised with a sight that seemed to have set all art at defiance, and was too odd for anything in nature. It appeared all in red, and to move; but so very slowly, that if we had not made more way to that than it did to us, we should have made it a day's journey before we met it. My companion could as little tell what to make of it as I; and, indeed, the nearer it came, the more monstrous it seemed, having nothing of the tokens of man, either walking, riding, or in any posture whatever. At last, coming up with this strange figure of a creature, (for now we found it was certainly such,) what, or rather who, should it prove to be, but major Boyd! He was a person of himself far from one of the

least proportion; and, mounted on a poor little ass, with all his warlike accoutrements upon it, you will allow must make a figure almost as odd as one of the old centaurs. The Morocco saddle that covered the ass, was of burden enough for the beast, without its master; and the additional holsters and pistols made it much more weighty. Nevertheless, a curb bridle of the largest size covered his little head, and a long red cloak, hanging down to the ground, covered jack-boots, ass, master, and all. In short, my companion and I, after we could specifically declare it to be a man, agreed we never saw a figure so comical in all our lives. When we had merrily greeted our major, (for a cynic could not have forborne laughter,) he excused all as well as he could, by saying, he could get no other beast. After which, delivering our message, and condoling with him for his present mounting, and wishing him better at his next quarters, he settled into his old pace, and we into ours, and parted.

We lay that night at Altea, famous for its bay for ships to water at. It stands on a high hill; and is adorned, not defended, with an old fort.

Thence we came to Alicant, where having now been a whole year, and having effected what was held necessary, I once more prevailed upon the governor to permit me to take another journey. The lord Galway lay at Tarraga, while Lerida lay under the siege of the duke of Orleans; and having some grounds of expectation given me, while he was at Alicant, I resolved at least to demonstrate I was still living. The governor favoured me with letters, not at all to my disadvantage; so taking ship for Barcelona, just at our putting into the harbour, we met with the English fleet, on its return from the expedition to Toulon under sir Cloudsly Shovel.

I stayed but very few days at Barcelona, and then proceeded on my intended journey to Tarraga; arriving at which place, I delivered my packet to the lord Gal

way, who received me with very great civility; and, to double it, acquainted me at the same time, that the governor of Alicant had wrote very much in my favour; but though it was a known part of that noble lord's character, that the first impression was generally strongest, I had reason soon after to close with another saying, equally true, That general rules always admit. of some exception. While I was here, we had news of the taking of the town of Lerida; the prince of Hesse, brother to that brave prince who lost his life before Monjouick, retiring into the castle with the garrison, which he bravely defended a long time after.

When I was thus attending my lord Galway at Tarraga, he received intelligence that the enemy had a design to lay siege to Denia; whereupon he gave me orders to repair there as engineer. After I had received my orders, and taken leave of his lordship, I set out, resolving, since it was left to my choice, to go by way of Barcelona, and there take shipping for the place of my station; by which I proposed to save more time than would allow me a full opportunity of visiting Montserat, a place I had heard much talk of, which had filled me with a longing desire to see it. To say truth, I had been told such extravagant things of the place, that I could hardly impute more than one-half of it to anything but Spanish rhodomontadoes, the vice of extravagant exaggeration being too natural to that nation.

Montserat is a rising lofty hill, in the very middle of a spacious plain, in the principality of Catalonia, about seven leagues distant from Barcelona to the westward, somewhat inclining to the north. At the very first sight, its oddness of figure promises something extraordinary; and even at that distance the prospect makes somewhat of a grand appearance: hundreds of aspiring pyramids, presenting themselves all at once to the eye, look, if I may be allowed so to speak, like a little petrified forest; or, rather, like the awful ruins

of some capacious structure, the labour of venerable antiquity. The nearer you approach, the more it affects; but, till you are very near, you can hardly form in your mind anything like what you find it when you come close to it. Till just upon it, you would imagine it a perfect hill of steeples; but so intermingled with trees of magnitude, as well as beauty, that your admiration can never be tired, or your curiosity surfeited. Such I found it on my approach; yet much less than what I found it was, so soon as I entered upon the very premises.

Now that stupendous cluster of pyramids affected me in a manner different to all before; and I found it so finely grouped with verdant groves, and here and there interspersed with aspiring but solitary trees, that it no way lessened my admiration, while it increased my delight. These trees, which I call solitary, as standing single, in opposition to the numerous groves, which are close and thick, (as I observed when I ascended to take a view of the several cells,) rise generally out of the very clifts of the main rock, with nothing, to appearance, but a soil or bed of stone for their nurture. But though some few naturalists may assert, that the nitre in the stone may afford a due proportion of nourishment to trees and vegetables; these in my opinion, were all too beautiful, their bark, leaf, and flowers, carried too fair a face of health, to allow them even to be the foster-children of rock and stone only.

Upon this hill, or, if you please, grove of rocks, are thirteen hermit's cells, the last of which lies near the very summit. You gradually advance to every one, from bottom to top, by a winding ascent, which to do would otherwise be impossible, by reason of the steepness; but though there is a winding ascent to every cell, as I have said, I would yet set at defiance the most observant, if a stranger, to find it feasible to visit them in order, if not precautioned to follow the poor borigo,